I nod, and then for some reason, I add, “Aric helped. He’s pretty good at baking.”
Now three pairs of witch eyes turn toward me, followed by fox eyes, rat eyes, and snake eyes—even the spirit companions are staring at me. I fight the urge to shrink under their gazes.
“Yeah, he cooks at home pretty often,” Maeve says. “My mom and his dad are both terrible in the kitchen.” She tips her head at me. “Has he been okay during tutoring? He’s not wasting your time, is he?”
I shake my head so fast that my hair flutters in front of my eyes and I have to push it back. “No, not at all. I mean, we’ve only had one session so far. But we’re meeting up tomorrow morning too. Afterbreakfast.”
Maeve narrows her eyes, and I pity anyone she looks at with actual venom in her stare. She can be terrifying when she wants to be. “Okay. But if he starts slacking, you promise you’ll tell me?”
I nod, but somehow, I don’t foresee that being a problem. I’ve not dreamt of it, anyway. “I promise.”
Lyra stretches, then pulls her explosion of red curls up into a bun on top of her head. “Can we go get second dinner now? I had Advanced Elemental Spellwork today, and it left mefamished.”
Alina giggles. “Famished? That doesn’t sound like a Lyra word.”
Lyra shrugs as she pushes to her feet. “Cairn says it. ‘I planted an orchard of apple trees today. Now I’m famished.’”
“When are we going to get to meet him, by the way?” Alina asks.
We all start picking up our plates and pulling on our boots to head down to the dining hall.
“You’ve met him,” Lyra says.
“She meansfor real,” Maeve clarifies. Then she looks at me. “Could she bring him to the ball? Or is it students only?”
“Oh, um...” I try to remember if I’ve discussed that with Professor Silvermoon, but I don’t think I have. “I’m not sure. I’ll ask though.”
“Cairn at a ball,” Lyra says with a mischievous smile as she pets Juniper, who’s seated on her shoulder now. “He’d hate that. But I’ve never seen him dressed up, so I might need to drag him along anyway.”
“And then we can actually talk to him,” Maeve says.
“He’s not much of a talker.”
“So nothing like you, huh?”
“Ha, ha. Funny storm witch.”
Lyra and Maeve start down the stairs, but I pause beside Alina and reach out to put a hand on her arm. “Are you sure it’s okay? To ask His Majesty, I mean.”
“Ask him what?”
Raelan materializes behind me, making me let out a yelp of surprise. No matter how much time I spend around him, I can’t get used to his silent shifter movement.
He smiles. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”
Alina pulls our door closed and locks it. “I’m going to ask Grandfather about hosting the Blue Moon Ball at the castle.” Alina’s pale eyes find mine. “And I’m sure. Like I said, he loves parties. He’ll probably try to plan it himself if you’re not careful.”
The idea of the king helping us organize a student ball makes me smile, and a comforting warmth washes over me.
When I first came to Coven Crest, I was terrified I wouldn’t get along with my roommates. Instead, I found my best friends. All the girls care for me and one another, and we’ve made our own little family within these castle walls. And as Raelan ruffles my hair and Alina scolds him for it, I can’t help but laugh.
“Let’s go eat,” Alina says, slipping her arm through mine. “I’mfamished.”
Chapter 13
Aric
I’M OUT ON THE RUNEBALL field before the sun comes up, doing my laps in the cold air, trying to get my head right for today. Not because we have a runeball game this afternoon—which we do—but because I’m supposed to meet Poppy for tutoring after breakfast. And knowing I’m going to see her today made it hard to sleep. I tossed and turned until Felex finally hissed at me to get up and get out.
